The Broken Road (21 page)

“No. It’s just stress. I’ve been dealing with a lot of crap,” I muttered. I could feel the blush creeping up. My sex life, well - the lack thereof - isn’t the issue here. My ribs were killing me and my face looks like I got whacked with a hammer. Luckily, I started to feel numb thanks to the nifty little painkiller button they installed next to me.

“I’m letting your mother in for just a quick second. We need to get going to radiology,” the nurse quipped, pulling back the curtain and gesturing to my mom. She rushed over to me and I could feel my eyes welling up with tears. I could see the anguish in her eyes.

“Oh Megs. You poor thing. I told you not to wear those heels.” my mom gently chastised, sniffling through her smile. What the hell was she talking about? I looked at her, confused until Uncle Bob came up behind her.

“Megs, I’m sorry. I had to tell your mom. We are quite concerned, especially with you hitting your face on the sink.” His voice was gentle, but the look on his face was anything but. His eyes were urging and he nodded slightly. I took a deep breath. He was right. Keeping the truth from my mom was probably the best thing right now.

“Yeah, I know Mom. You know how gravity and I don’t get along. Add a pair of heels to the equation and you have a recipe for disaster,” I replied. The nurse hustled in at that exact moment, thankfully ending the conversation.

“She’ll be back in an hour or so. Why don’t you take a seat in the waiting room?” The nurse ushered my mom out of the way so that the orderly could wheel me down the hall. Mom squeezed my hand and kissed my cheek before she let go. I felt so bad for lying but having her know the truth would be too much.

I got through the CT scan and the X-ray without too much poking and prodding. Five hours later, I was sitting back in my little curtain-enclosed room, with my mother hovering. The doctor came in and barely acknowledged her. He looked at me and briskly said. “Amazingly, young lady, you’re not as bad off as you look. Your ribs are severely bruised but not enough to be seriously worried about. Your lung function is fine. Your cheekbone is also pretty bruised but not broken. Your jaw will be sore, but nothing is shattered. It will hurt to chew, so I’m recommending a soft diet. When you sneeze, hold a pillow to your chest. I want you to stay home and rest for the next week. You’ll be in pain. I have a pain prescription, a medication that’s safe to take during pregnancy, ready to be filled. This IV drip is fine for now and will not hurt the fetus. If at any point you feel worse, get dizzy, or have weakness in your legs, please let me know as soon as possible. If it becomes hard to breathe, contact emergency services immediately. I’ve signed the discharge papers, so the nurse will come and get you shortly,” he said curtly, and started to walk around the curtain. As an afterthought, he paused. “Do you have any questions?”

My mind was in a haze. He must have put me on some good drugs because I didn’t hear a single thing after he mentioned the word fetus. Fetus? Did that mean I was pregnant? No. No way. Huh? I shook my head, then instantly regretted it when I yelped in pain.

“Um… Wait. What? Did you say fetus?” I asked. I glanced at my mom, who was staring at the doctor like he had grown a second head. Bewildered and disoriented, I slowly turned back to the doctor. “There has to be a mistake.”

I must have been messing up with his late night dinner plans, because the doctor sighed with exasperation. “Yes. You’re pregnant. About six weeks along. You’ll need to make an appointment with your OB/GYN. Prenatal vitamins can be picked up at the pharmacy along with your prescription. The nurse will be in shortly.” With that, the curmudgeon of a doctor turned on his heels and walked away.

Dumbfounded. I was absolutely dumbfounded. I’m pregnant. How? Well. Duh. I know how, but… I couldn’t wrap my head around it. I had been on the pill but then there was that couple days when I had forgotten to take it. Oh crap. I remembered my mother was sitting next to me, and I slowly checked her reaction. She was just as stunned as I was.

“Momma?” I ventured. “Mom? Are you okay?”

She shook her head. “Did he just say what I think he said?”

I shrugged. “I think he said I was pregnant.” I couldn’t say any more than that. I was speechless. Thoughts went flying through my head in a drug-filled haze. Me? A mom? How in the hell am I going to make this work? I’m not married. I’m not with Shane anymore. Was I really going to end up as a single mother? I rubbed my eyes with my hand, grimacing as the slight movement hurt.

“Well. Let’s not think about this now. We’ll get you home and into bed. I have Penny at my place already,” Mom said briskly, gathering up my things. “Sarah brought over some clothes for you. She stopped by while you were getting x-rayed. She had a bridal dress fitting or she would have stayed. While the nurse discharges you, I’m going to run and get the car. I’ll be right back.” She hurried out of the room. The wedding was in October and Sarah had already picked out these form fitting dresses for her bridesmaids to wear. I’m not going to fit in my dress! I momentarily panicked, then gave myself a mental slap. Really? Why am I freaking out about this now? I need to think straight and worry about what’s going on, not about fitting into some dress.

I felt flustered, only this time I know it wasn’t the drugs talking. I laid back onto the pillows and tried to rationalize through this. This is the 21
^st
century. A woman has options. But no other option came to mind when I pictured Shane’s baby. A baby boy with his mischievous grin and hazel eyes; my father’s dimples.

Shane. A stark realization hit. Shane didn’t know. And how could I get a hold of him to let him know? He had left his cell phone at the house and, from my understanding, hasn’t touched base with anyone.
He would make an excellent father.
I could hear the conversation now. “Oh! I know you lied to me and my family, you shot my brother and dealt drugs. I also hear that you bailed yourself out of jail and didn’t even bother to let me know. By the way, I’m having your baby.” No. That wasn’t going to happen. My baby deserved better that. My head felt so heavy and confused; thoughts kept bashing into each other. It was too much to think about.

The nurse came bustling in at that moment and I was grateful her interruption.

“Now Megan. Here’s your prescription for your pain reliever. Take it twice a day for the next couple of days. Then you’ll decrease it over time. Make sure you follow up with your primary physician and your OB. You should refrain from lifting for the next six weeks and driving for the next week. Here you go, just sign here,” the nurse said with a perky smile. I dutifully signed the release forms and she helped me stand up. “I believe your mom is on her way back in. I can help you get dressed if you want.”

“That’s fine,” I muttered. She helped me pull on the yoga capris and t-shirt that Sarah had brought over. I felt like a child when she pulled on my socks and sneakers. The nurse sat me in the wheelchair and rolled me out into the lobby. It was close to midnight and I could see Mom’s blue sedan at the front entrance. With the nurse’s help, I managed to slide into the passenger seat without hurting too much.

“Did anyone get my car?” I asked, as I realized that my car was still in the firm’s parking lot. As much as I loved having my mom take care of me, there was a limit on the amount of coddling I could take. I would need the ability to escape.

“Bob and Tommy brought it back to my house,” she replied vaguely. I slowly turned to look at her.

“Tommy? As in Tommy Greene? Like my ex-fiancé Tommy? Why is he still around? I thought that after he busted Shane he’d be living it up back in New York with his FBI buddies.” I replied. I watched her expression to see if she was hiding anything from me.

“Yes, that Tommy. He stopped by the hospital as well. He’s concerned about you Megs. He feels horrible for what happened. And honestly, I have to say that I’m glad he did what he did. I could kill Shane myself. He shot your brother. He brought drug dealers into your home. I don’t think I can ever forgive him.”

I stayed silent. I knew she was right. I know that what Shane did will never be forgivable. But at the same time, the pain of losing him only deepened with knowing that he was going to be a father. That he will never know about his child that I’m carrying. I turned and stared out the window as the highway gave way to the huge houses and big lots that was my hometown. It used to be that Davidsonville was a farming town, but the real estate boom hit in the 1990s, and now there are mansions mingled with smaller homes. We turned down my mother’s street and a wave of nostalgia hit me. I remember riding my bike down these streets, playing kickball, and hide-n-seek. Things were so much simpler then. What I wouldn’t give to have that innocence back. To not know the dangers of a broken heart, to not feel the pain of betrayal.

Mom helped me inside and into my old room. My mom never changed my bedroom. It still had the peach walls, blue carpeting, and white furniture of my childhood. But gone were the rock posters, replaced with family photos. She settled me into bed and Penny jumped up to join me.

“Go to bed sweetie. You need to rest,” she said gently, as she tucked my hair behind my ear and kissed my forehead. Just like when I was a kid. I choked back the tears.

“Mom. Thanks for everything. I love you,” I whispered. She smiled.

“I love you too. You’ll know soon enough. There isn’t anything you won’t do for your children.” And with that, she headed out of the bedroom.

I rubbed Penny’s ears and thought about what she said. She never failed to insert words of wisdom when I least expected it.

“So, Penny. Are you ready to have a baby in the house?” I whispered. Penny just gazed at me with her brown eyes and thumped her tail, then gave a wide yawn and closed her eyes. I followed suit.

I slept horribly that night and woke the next morning feeling mangled. The drugs had knocked me out. I felt so stiff and sore. My right side was throbbing and pulsing. I needed to get out of bed, but every move that I tried made me want to scream out in agony. I cursed the bastard who did this to me and wished I could shoot hot irons under his fingernails. Helpless, I gave in. This wasn’t going to work. I wasn’t going to be able to do this alone.

“Mom! I need to pee! Can you please help me?” I wailed pitifully. Our walls are thin so I could hear her rattling in the kitchen. Footsteps came down the hall and I was so glad to hear the door open. However, I wasn’t so glad to see the face that poked in.

“What are you doing here?” I grumbled. I really didn’t want Tommy’s help in going to the bathroom. That would just be so awkward. And unnecessary. “Where’s my mom?” I demanded, as I struggled to get up. Apparently the flailing of my arms and legs amused him, because he busted out with laughter.

“You look like a fish out of water!” he said, masking his laugh with a cough. “Here. Let me help you.” He managed to pull me out of bed with the least amount of pain as he could. I suffered through the embarrassment long enough before I gave him my evil glare.

“Thanks. I think I can manage fine now,” I muttered, as I shuffled my way to the bathroom.

“Are you sure? I can come in and help you,” he called out. I gave him the middle finger over my shoulder and closed the bathroom door.
This freaking sucks.
I glanced at the mirror and groaned. I looked like I had gone ten rounds in the boxing ring. My face was a rainbow of colors. My eye was swollen with shades of purple and red, with my cheek and jaw line a psychedelic swirl of yellows and greens. I looked like a monster. I used the bathroom and debated about jumping into the shower, when I thought against it. I didn’t bring any clothes with me and I’ll be damned if I let Tommy see me naked. I opened the door and shuffled to the kitchen. Tommy was pouring a cup of coffee when I walked in. I sat down at the table and he handed it to me.

“I already added your creamer. There’s your juice. You are due for another round of pain meds,” he said cheerfully. He brought my pain pills over and sat down across from me. I swallowed them with the juice then picked up my mug.

“Thanks,” I said dryly. “Where’s my mom?”

“She went to the grocery store. I offered to babysit while she’s gone.”

“Yeah, well I’m up now. I don’t need a sitter,” I mumbled. I didn’t want him to have the satisfaction of my dependence on him.

“Well, I did have an ulterior motive. I wanted to talk to you.” Tommy said softly.

“I really don’t think I want to talk to you right now, Tommy. I don’t think you have anything to say that I want to hear,” I replied wearily.

“Look. I get it. You’re pissed. And you have every right to be. But you have to understand what’s going on,” he replied tersely.

“Fine. What is so important that you had to come over here?” I retorted, meeting his gaze.

“I’m sorry for busting Shane like that. But you have to know the truth. You’re in danger Megan.”

I scoffed at the idea. “Really? What gave you that idea? Because some asshole beat the shit out of me? All because he was looking for Shane? Who by the way, is out on bail. Did you know that?”

“No. He’s not out on bail,” Tommy replied slowly.

“Well that guy thinks he is. And I want to know why I wasn’t told. Why didn’t anyone tell me? Why didn’t he call me?” I cried, as angry tears welled up. Crap. I didn’t want to cry in front of Tommy.

”Shane isn’t out on bail. He was moved to a safe house.”

“Uh. Okay. Why?” I was confused. I knew a little bit about the prison system because of my uncle and father. I know it’s not normal procedure for felons to be transported to a safe house unless they are going to rat someone out. “Is he going to talk and cop a plea?”

“Well, yeah. He works for us,” he said softly.

Chapter 20

“What the hell are you talking about? Shane is FBI?” What the hell is going on around here? Another lie. Can anyone get their freaking story straight?

“Well, not really. It’s complicated.”

“Oh yeah? Well, apparently I have time to kill. So indulge me,” I replied, as I cautiously leaned back in the chair.